im an architectrual engineering student and i am interested in the using of CFD in architectural engineering,such as HVAC system, indoor air,wind engineering,or outdoor environment.But i dont know what is the most important skills to be a good CFD user? how are these course important,Partical derential Equation,Numerial Method,Fluids mechanics and dynamics? Do i have to take descret mathematics? Which is more important between the architectural engineering knowledge and programming skills? I am in undergraduate program,could someone tell me how i can be good at CFD step by step during my university study? Any suggestions and ideas would be greatly appreciated. Jack

You should definitely have an adequate understanding of Fluid Mechanics. An undergraduate course would be a good start. The more you understand about the mathematics the better, but it really depends how much customization or code development you want to undertake. Depending on the code you are using, you may want to look at an FEA/FEM or equivalent course.

If your university has an engineering department, check to see if there is CFD software available for students in the Computer Lab and try going through some of the tutorials.

Regards,

Derrek

If you are interested in writing your own CFD codes, the best way to learn is by practice. Start with something simple - for compressible flow, for example, you might start with the scalar wave equation (i.e., propogation of a step discontinuity), then move to the 1D Euler equations, then 2D, next 2D generalized coordinates, etc... Anderson has a relatively good book to help out beginners <a href=http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0070016852/qid=1073349020/sr=1-4/ref=sr_1_4/102-2187928-8878552?v=glance&s=books>here</a>. Once you get started, it gets easier - in my experience, the most difficult part was taking that first step of solving an actual flow (i.e., 1D Euler equations). In other words, a lot of the multi-dimensional CFD algorithms are based on 1D methods (i.e., TVD schemes), so if you learn it in 1D, it is relatively straightforward to apply it to 2D and 3D cases.

Regarding classes, I would suggest that you have a good understanding of Fluid Mechanics, and good programming skills. Background in mathematics (partial differential equations, numerical methods) is also useful.

Good luck!

Be very careful on boundary conditions/structures

90% of code instability, bugs are from there

I am very glad to get your response,thanks very much and i will try to do it. Jack

I am working in Urea manufacturing unit. Recently I have read an article about the application of CFD in packaging unit. we have big bagging plant where per day we bagging around 50000 bags of urea containing 50 kgs/bag.

Hi Jack

I work for a company called IES ltd (www.iesve.com) We specialise in dynamic thermal simulation of buildings and their systems and have recently introduced CFD to our framework, allowing simple yet accurate CFDs to be done on systems within hours, or even minutes. In order for you to acquire the software, you must first approach your university and ask them to contact us, either through the website, or phone 0141 552 8368 and ask for Susan Cassidy.

Good luck with your CFD.

Regards

Pete